Committee on the Promotion of Racial Harmony
Notes of the meeting on 5 November 2009
Attendance
Chairman: Mr Arthur Ho, Deputy Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs (1)
Member: Ms Raees Begum Baig
Mrs Cheung-Ang Siew Mei
Mr Manohar Chugh
Mr James Arthur Elms
Dr Keezhangatte, James Joseph
Ms Mandap, Daisy Catherine
Mr Sem Lim Njauw
Mr Muhammed Javed Shahab
Mr Buddhi Bahadur Thapa
Mr Tsui Fook Keung
Mr Saeed-Uddin, MH
Dr Yung Pui-yip, Paul
Mr Ching Wai Hung (Education Bureau)
Ms Ruby Chu (Labour Department)
Ms Iris Yick (Home Affairs Department)
Mr Hubert Law (Constitutional and Mainland Affairs Bureau)
Mr Frank Tsang (Constitutional and Mainland Affairs Bureau)
Ms Shirley Chan (Constitutional and Mainland Affairs Bureau)
In Attendance:
Mr Raymond Tang (Equal Opportunities Commission)
Ms Karrie Chan (Hong Kong Christian Service)
Ms Hazel Chan (Hong Kong Christian Service)
Mr Leonard Law (Innovation and Technology Commission)
Ms Rose May Li (Television and Entertainment Licensing Authority)
Dr Christina Ng (Employees Retraining Board)
Mr Sin Kwok-kei (Office of the Telecommunications Authority)
Ms Elvina Siu (Vocational Training Council)
Mr Christopher To (Construction Industry Council)
Mrs Anissa Wong (Education Bureau)
Ms Nicole Yuen (Office of the Government Chief Information Officer)
Absence with apologies:
Ms Aruna Gurung
Ms Kanokwal, Ratana-Ubol
Mr Amarjeet Singh Khosa
Ms Annie Lin
Ms Queenie Chan (Information Services Department)
1. Confirmation of the notes of discussion on 29 April 2009
1.1 The notes of the last meeting held on 29 April 2009 were confirmed.
2. Matter arising from the meeting on 29 April 2009:
2.1 Report of the HKSAR under the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination: The Chairman said that the HKSAR team attended, as part of China’s delegation, the hearing on China’s report by the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD) on 7 and 10 August 2009. After the hearing, CERD publicised its concluding observations on China’s report on 28August. CMAB would prepare a paper setting out the initial views of the Administration on matters raised in the concluding observations for discussion at the Panel on Constitutional Affairs of the Legislative Council, and copy it to Committee Members for discussion at the next meeting.
[Post-meeting note: The paper on the Administration’s initial views on matters raised in CERD’s concluding observations was issued to members on 11 November 2009.]
2.2 Implementation of the Race Discrimination Ordinance and the Code of Practice on Employment: The Chairman said that the Race Discrimination Ordinance (RDO) and the Code of Practice on Employment under the RDO came into full operation on 10 July 2009. The Equal Opportunities Commission (EOC) had taken up the responsibility of handling complaints on racial discrimination as well as promotion of racial equality and harmony.
2.3 Mr Tang said that since the full implementation of the RDO, the EOC had received around 200 enquiries, 12 complaints for investigation and conciliation and handled 6 self-initiated investigations relevant to the RDO. Most of the complaints were in the area of employment, relating to contract renewal, less favourable treatment, and harassing remarks. At the same time, EOC had launched wide publicity and public education activities to promote the RDO and to increase public awareness of relevant equal opportunities issues.
3. Administrative Guidelines on Promotion of Racial Equality:
3.1 At the invitation of the Chairman, Mr Hubert Law briefed members on the draft Administrative Guidelines on Promotion of Racial Equality, which provided general guidance to concerned bureaux, departments and relevant public authorities to promote racial equality and ensure equal access to public services in key areas concerned, and to take this into account in formulating and implementing their policies and measures.
3.2 Issues raised by members and the discussions were set out below:
(a) Scope of application: A member suggested that the Guidelines should cover the areas of activities undertaken by law enforcement agencies. The Chairman explained that as previously discussed at the Legislative Council during the scrutiny of the Race Discrimination Bill, the Guidelines were intended to cover key public services which were particularly relevant to meeting the special needs of ethnic minorities and facilitating their integration into the community. The key public services in this context were medical, education, vocational training, employment and major community services.
(b) Progress on implementation: A member asked about the timetable for other bureaux, departments and public authorities to submit their checklists of measures, and the respective names of designated officers who would coordinate the implementation of the Guidelines. The Chairman said that CMAB would finalise the Guidelines taking into account views expressed by relevant parties. Bureaux, departments and public authorities concerned would also draw up the remaining checklists of measures. CMAB would keep the Committee informed of the implementation progress.
(c) Draft checklist of measures on education: Some members expressed concerns that most non-Chinese speaking (NCS) students had difficulties in learning Chinese, particularly in reading or writing. This might affect their learning progress due to the requirement of the same Chinese proficiency between mainstream students and NCS students. Mrs Wong responded that it was the Government’s policy to facilitate the early integration of NCS students into the local education system. In recognition of the needs of NCS students, the EDB had stepped up efforts to put in place various educational support measures, particularly in their learning of the Chinese language. In November 2008, as an enhanced support measure for NCS students, the Supplementary Guide to the Chinese Language Curriculum for Non-Chinese Speaking Students was published. The Guide included multiple curriculum modes of “immersion in Chinese Language lessons”, “bridging/transition”, “specific learning purposes” and “integration”, pitching for the appropriate learning level, leading to multiple exits for NCS students.
(d) Mr Tang said that although the EDB had implemented support measures to address the issue, experience showed that NCS students lacked the necessary Chinese language skills for access to tertiary education and for competing in the job market of Hong Kong. The EOC considered it worthwhile to look into the issue of education for NCS students, and would commission a research study in this area.
(e) A member expressed concerned about the lack of an official education policy for teaching Chinese as a second language for NCS students. The member said that the EDB often cited that such a policy would cause a “labeling effect”, and asked if the EDB had any study findings to substantiate the claim. Mr Ching said that the learning of Chinese by NCS students would provide them with a wider range of learning opportunities to meet different needs.
(f) Some members said that although the results of GCSE Chinese Examinations were recognised as an alternative Chinese language qualification for admission to Secondary 6 or the undergraduate programmes in universities, it was not very useful because it pitched at a lower level. Mrs Wong replied that the GCSE Chinese Examinations had been administered in Hong Kong to address the needs of NCS students who preferred to obtain alternative Chinese language qualifications for higher education or for employment. With the above measure and other support measures such as increasing the number of designated schools to provide focused support to NCS students, providing professional development programmes for teachers, and setting up Chinese Language Support Centres to provide after school programmes, a more sustainable impact on the learning of NCS students would be expected, and it was hoped that more NCS students would be able to attain a higher level of proficiency in the Chinese language.
(g) A member suggested that NCS students should have the option to learn spoken Putonghua and simplified Chinese characters. Other members expressed that the learning effectiveness of students not only hinged on the learning and teaching in schools, but was also affected by the extent of family support and parents’ motivation. Mrs Wong noted the comments.
(h) The Chairman said that now that the four support service centres had commenced operation, CMAB intended to invite the centres to consider running tuition classes at these centres for students of non-designated schools which could complement the current programmes in the schools and other initiatives under the EDB.
(i) Draft checklist on employment: Some members suggested that the checklists on employment should focus on measures to rationalise the language proficiency requirements for the civil service, with a view to enhancing the appointment of ethnic minorities. A member proposed the formulation of affirmative action or a quota system to enhance diversity in the civil service. The Chairman explained that Chinese was extensively used in the civil service because the majority of the population in Hong Kong used Chinese. TheChinese language requirement was made on the basis of operational need of the positions concerned. This notwithstanding, the Civil Service Bureau (CSB) had put in place arrangements to allow individual departments the flexibility in setting appropriate language requirements for their grades. In response to members’ concerns, the Chairman agreed to consider inviting representatives from CSB at a future meeting to brief the Committee regarding the policy on language proficiency requirements for civil service appointments.
4. Progress on support service centres for ethnic minorities:
4.1 The Chairman said that all four centres had commenced operation. At the invitation of the Chairman, Mr Law of CMAB briefed members on the general progress of the establishment of the centres, and Ms Hazel Chan briefed members on the latest development of the CHEER Centre operated by the Hong Kong Christian Service.
4.2 Issues raised by members and the discussions were set out below:
(a) Web sites: A member noted that the webpage of the Race Relations Unit (RRU) had linked to three of the four centres with dedicated websites to promote their services and programmes, and asked why the HOPE Centre operated by the International Social Service – Hong Kong Branch did not provide a website. Ms Shirley Chan explained that the webpage of HOPE Centre was under construction. The webpage of RRU would include a link to the HOPE Centre when its website was available.
(b) A member noted that the CHEER Centre had uploaded information in minority languages onto its website. To facilitate ethnic minority users to navigate to the webpages in their language speedily, the Member suggested that hyperlinks to webpages in respective minority languages be included in the homepage of the CHEER Centre, with titles in respective languages. Ms Hazel Chan noted the suggestion.
(c) Cultural programmes: A member said that integration of ethnic minorities into the community involved both the ethnic minorities and the local Chinese population, and therefore the four centres should also devote efforts to engage the local Chinese in appreciating cultures of ethnic minorities. Ms Karrie Chan agreed that the promotion of cross-cultural understanding was important. In this regard, their Ethnic Minorities Service units would provide sensitivity training for students of local schools, and minority tour guides would explain their cultural heritage to the local Chinese on organised tours. Mrs Cheung said that the SHINE Centre operated by the Christian Action offered cooking classes in which women of different racial groups shared their homemade ethnic delicacies. A cookbook was also published in which ethnic minorities introduced South Asian cuisine to local readers.
(d) Quality of translation: A member mentioned that there were some incorrect translations in the multilingual leaflet of the CHEER Centre. Ms Karrie Chan explained that they had already taken steps to verify the translations. Interpreters were required to take translation tests and be examined by a selection committee comprising three to four guest examiners who were proficient in the language concerned, before being recruited. Before undertaking assignments, all new recruits had to complete pre-job training programmes. The Centre had made maximum use of the linguistic skills of their minority employees to ensure the quality of translation. Some Committee members expressed that they could offer assistance to the CHEER Centre by assisting in assessing the performance of interpreters to ensure that they performed up to standards.
(e) Operational difficulties: Upon a member’s enquiry about the operational difficulties encountered by the CHEER Centre, Ms Hazel Chan said that the absence of a critical mass of qualified interpreters who were conversant in the relevant ethnic minority languages had resulted in unexpected delay in the recruitment of sufficient interpreters. Another possible issue was to convince ethnic minority users that the services offered by the CHEER Centre were religiously neutral, although Hong Kong Christian Service has a religious background.
(f) Telephone interpretation: In response to a member’s enquiry, MsHazel Chan said that Pakistanis were the most frequent service users of telephone interpretation service. Common interpretation requests included enquiries from public housing estate tenants on maintenance of housing facilities, and requests for financial assistances provided by the Social Welfare Department.
(g) Operation during non-operation hours: A member asked about the arrangement of telephone interpretation during non-operation hours. Ms Hazel Chan explained that non-operation hours referred to 10 pm to 8 am on Mondays to Sundays and general holidays. During these hours, calls to the hotline were handled by a recording system, but if a caller indicated that there was an urgent need for interpretation, a duty staff who understood English would receive the call and attempt to locate a suitable interpreter, and reply to the request as soon as possible.
(h) Conclusion: The Chairman concluded that apart from the interpretation and translation services provided by the CHEER Centre, all centres offered language training, sight translation and other support services for ethnic minorities to facilitate their access to public services and integration into the community. It was important to ensure that the four support service centres would provide equal access to their services for all ethnic minority groups, and that the facilities and services of the centres were well publicised. CMAB and the centres would continue to make efforts to publicise the services, and would further extend the network to reach out to different ethnic minority communities.
5. Any other business:
5.1 On the occasion of the retirement of Mr Tang in January 2010 from the Equal Opportunities Commission, the Chairman expressed on behalf of the Committee sincere gratitude for his contribution to the Committee since April 2007. His advice and suggestions had been invaluable to the Committee’s work.
6. Date of Next Meeting: CMAB would inform Members of the date of the next meeting.
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